4 Clever Tips To Help Fundraise For Charity
Newbie fundraisers tend to cut and run. It’s understandable because answering the question of why you deserve to receive donations can be pretty intimidating. You might start to fumble and, in the end, lose your potential supporters. But it doesn’t have to be this way. You can employ smart techniques to be a better fundraiser. After all, you want your charity to receive all the support it can get. To do that, you may want to consider these tips:
1. Use Crowdfunding Platforms
If you’re not familiar with crowdfunding, it’s when organizations use small amounts of capital donated by many people to fund a project or venture. This is typically done through the internet. Crowdfunding has been a reliable tool used by many institutions, including churches, schools, and hospitals worldwide.
Through crowdfunding platforms or fundraising campaign, you’ll be able to advocate your causes and ideals and acquire funds from your supporters. If you’re looking to raise money for the advocacies of your organization, here are some reasons why crowdfunding platforms can help you fundraise:
- It’s secure. Most importantly, you also get to secure your data even better. Crowdsourcing platforms allow you to view your data instantly without the risk of exposing it to unauthorized people. This means you can regularly track your funds, allowing you to see the fruits of your labor better. Most crowdfunding platforms have tight online security as it involves money and critical information from their users. You may even find free platforms like Give Butter and others to maximize your donations.
- It can reach more people. Another reason why you should try online fundraising is the awareness it gives to your cause. Since it’s done online, everyone on the internet who will stumble upon your post can participate in your cause. This offers possible supporters easy access to join your mission. And, in turn, it allows you to expand your visibility and supporter base. This way, you won’t be limited to in-person meetings looking for supporters. Instead, you can earn supporters online and worldwide.
It’s automated since it’s done online. Because of this, you’ll be saving time and money. There’s no more need for unnecessary steps like when you receive a check from the mail. The latter usually takes longer because you’ll have to wait for the check to be sent to you. Apart from that, you’ll also have to enter the check on your database manually. And, of course, send a thank you note to your supporter. All of these combined can really eat up your time because you’ll be doing all the work. However, with crowdfunding platforms, you get such tasks automated. With online fundraising, your supporter will be sending donations directly to your database. After that, the database itself will send a thank you and a tax receipt to your donors. You can accomplish all of this without manually doing it. In addition to that, there’s also no need to enter data into your spreadsheet manually. And without manual entry, there’s less chance of human error. By having the menial tasks automated, you can focus on what matters: implementing your goals.
2. Try Hosting Your Own Event
Aside from online campaigns, you can make your fundraising events more personal. Fundraising events are a great way to build connections with the people around you. If you keep your donors happy in your events, then there’s a higher chance they’ll keep supporting you.
You can use any event you have in mind as a means to gather funds for your advocacies. However, it would be best if you make it creative as well. Thus, for your next fundraising event, you may want to keep these few things in mind:
- Setting up an event can require a bit of money. You may want to ask local businesses around you if they want to sponsor the food and other items. In return, you can give them a free advertisement to thank them.
- To avoid overworking yourself, try to get other people to help you out. If you know anyone who believes in the same cause, ask them if they’re interested in joining.
3. Share A Compelling Story
Regardless of the reasons you’re doing a fundraiser, you’ll need to highlight your story. Share to people why you’re helping the charity by adopting businesses’ storytelling techniques.
Perhaps it’s because you went through something that resonates with the charity you’re supporting. It could also be because the charity has helped you or other people, and now they’re the one in need. Whatever it is, you’ll have to share that story with your potential sponsors or donors. This way, they’ll be inspired and encouraged to help.
When you’re sharing your story, it’s essential to know that using your voice to tell the narrative is more effective. You can make it even more compelling through videos or images. Whatever medium you choose, just make sure it fits your story and your narrative. Plus, you’ll also have to make sure your audience understands how and why they should donate.
Thus, you may want to do the following when telling your story so you can captivate your target sponsors:
- Add facts about your charity. Let your donors know who your charity is, what they stand for, or their mission.
- Show them the problem. Tell your prospective supporters how your charity is struggling with the situation.
- Add an emotional touch to your narrative. Let your donors know why the charity emotionally appealed to you.
- Explain to your supporters how they can be part of the solution. Tell them that even a small amount can do wonders in helping your charity.
4. Don’t Be Scared To Set An Ambitious Goal
Although setting up an event is a challenging part, it isn’t the toughest one yet. Instead, getting funds is. However, it would be best if you don’t let it stop you from setting an ambitious goal.
What you should do is shoot for the stars. To do that, here are a few things you can apply:
- Put your most generous sponsor at the top of the list. Prospective donors are usually unsure exactly how much to donate. But, by seeing other people’s donations, they’ll be more likely to donate a similar amount.
- Be specific. There’s no room for ambiguity when you’re asking for sponsorship. You’ll have to be persuasive if you want your supporters to give you the funding you need. By being specific, you should explain your goals and target fund.
This way, you’ll be more likely to generate funds. Instead of saying “hundreds of dollars for my charity,” say, “USD$500 to help my charity build a greenhouse garden.” That way, your potential donors will know where the money will go and how much you’re needing.
Conclusion
Fundraising can be the determining factor whether or not your charity or organization stays afloat. Strong fundraising techniques will make sure you have sufficient funds to help and support your cause. Substandard performance, on the contrary, will only endanger or cause your organization to lose money. Thus, you may want to try applying the ways mentioned above.
